Gibbons receives ejection for arguing foul ball ruling

By
Evan Peaslee
MLB.com

TORONTO -- Blue Jays manager John Gibbons was ejected by home-plate umpire Alan Porter in the ninth inning of Tuesday night's 7-6 loss to the Tigers at Rogers Centre.

With his club down a run and Munenori Kawasaki at the plate with one away, the Blue Jays infielder showed bunt on a pitch from Tigers closer Joaquin Benoit. Kawasaki would eventually pull back, missing the pitch, which then hit him on the foot.

Porter ruled it a foul ball, leading Gibbons to come out and question the call.

"He called it a foul ball and I didn't think he fouled it off," Gibbons said. "I thought he pulled the bat back, he called it foul. My complaint was that I was looking to see if he can get some help."

Porter didn't ask for help, and after a lengthy conversation with Toronto's skipper, Gibbons received his fourth ejection of the season.

Gibbons' biggest complaint came not from the call itself, but why the umpires couldn't confer on the play.

"That's all they do in baseball now, the umpires get together," Gibbons said. "If you get together and everyone says it was a foul ball, you walk off the field. But I thought the way everyone's talking now about getting things right, get a little bit of courtesy and it's all taken care of. That was my main complaint because I didn't think he fouled the ball, I don't think he touched it."